Kremlin surprised Poland won’t give Ukraine free coal

Now that Ukraine wants to receive Polish coal, and not Russian gas, free of charge, the Kremlin said it is surprised at Warsaw’s inconsistency towards Ukraine’s energy crisis.

“Our Polish partners have reacted in such a lively way to
news of Ukraine wanting to get Polish coal almost free of
charge,” Dmitry Peskov, the spokesman of Russian President
Vladimir Putin, said. The Russian President was in Milan Friday
with European and Asian leaders at the ASEM summit.

Peskov sees a major inconsistency in Warsaw’s attitude towards
Ukraine in terms of which resources can be obtained for free and
which cannot. The aide told Poland it shouldn’t be surprised that
Ukraine wants to receive coal without paying, since Poland thinks
that giving Ukraine Russian gas for free is fair.

Poland said it will provide Ukraine with coal as it faces an
energy pinch in the lead up to winter. Poland has 10 million tons
of unsold coal, which Warsaw blames on a flood of Russian
imports.

Ukraine is one of world’s top coal consumers, and home to the 7th
largest reserves. However, coal production in Ukraine has
suffered as a result of war in the Donbass
region, where 90 percent of the country’s coal mines are located.
Most have closed down because of the fighting.

According to Peskov, Thursday’s report from Poland has shed light
on the gas conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

“This is the best illustration of what’s going on in the gas
sphere. The Poles were greatly impressed and did not conceal
their shock. But still they can fully understand the desire to
have gas free of charge.”

The “free gas” Peskov is talking about is the over 11.5 billion
cubic meters of Russian gas Ukraine has imported, but not paid
for.

In June, Gazprom switched off gas to Ukraine after Kiev refused to
pay off its $5.3 billion debt or agree to price negotiations. In
2013 Ukraine used 50 billion cubic meters of gas to heat its
homes and factories.

More gas discussions are to follow, as Russian Energy Minister
Aleksandr Novak and the head of Gazprom Aleksey Miller are part
of the Russian delegation currently in Italy for talks.